PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Syracuse, NY

46.9
Life Score / 100
C+
Grade (curved)
#241
of 387 metros
38%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

Verify: BEA · BLS · HUD · FBI · NCES · EPA · Census

The verdict

Syracuse ranks #241 of 387 US metros, ahead of 38% - carried by its environment (88/100) and held back most by schools (5/100).

88
strongest: Environment
83
then: Wages
5
weakest: Schools
7
weighted dimensions

Where Syracuse sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

47 38th percentile higher than 38% of 387 US metros

25–30: 1 US metros (0%). Below this entry. 30–35: 16 US metros (4%). Below this entry. 35–40: 46 US metros (12%). Below this entry. 40–45: 53 US metros (14%). Below this entry. 45–50: 81 US metros (21%). This entry sits in this band. 50–55: 67 US metros (17%). Above this entry. 55–60: 68 US metros (18%). Above this entry. 60–65: 40 US metros (10%). Above this entry. 65–70: 12 US metros (3%). Above this entry. 70–75: 3 US metros (1%). Above this entry. This metro 25 75 every US metro, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainCompare composite of BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, DOL, EPA data · May 2026

How the score is built

Reading the Syracuse Life Score

Syracuse's composite score of 46.9 out of 100, a grade of C+, places the metro at rank #241 of 387, ahead of 38% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Environment (88/100) and Wages (83/100), which pull the composite upward, while Schools (5/100) and Childcare (19/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 95.7 (rent-RPP 80.7). BLS median salary $71,924, 291,140 jobs (Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Registered Nurses, Retail Salespersons). HUD 2BR FMR $1,392/mo (studio $995).

FBI UCR (NY): 380 violent, 1661 property/100K. NCES: 11.8:1 ratio, 7.1% charter. DOL infant childcare $13,869/yr. EPA: 122 Superfund sites (NY). Ranks #238-#244 below.

Dimension detail

How Syracuse scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 39/100 (20%)
Wages 83/100 (20%)
Rent 39/100 (15%)
Safety 37/100 (15%)
Schools 5/100 (10%)
Childcare 19/100 (10%)
Environment 88/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

95.7
Cost Index (RPP)
$71,924
Avg Median Salary
$1,392
2BR Fair Market Rent
380
Violent Crime/100K (NY)
11.8:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$13,869
Infant Childcare/yr (NY)
122
Superfund Sites (NY)
291,140
Total Employment

Crime, schools, childcare, and environment data shown at state level where metro-specific data is unavailable.

Compare Syracuse With...

Syracuse vs Utica Compare → Syracuse vs Watertown Compare → Syracuse vs Binghamton Compare → Syracuse vs Wildwood Compare → Syracuse vs Waterloo Compare → Syracuse vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Syracuse outranks 38% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#238 Reading, PA 47.0 C+
#239 Harrisonburg, VA 47.0 C+
#240 Bloomington, IN 47.0 C+
#241 Syracuse, NY 46.9 C+
#242 Binghamton, NY 46.9 C+
#243 Coeur d'Alene, ID 46.9 C+
#244 Lewiston-Auburn, ME 46.8 C+

NY Metro Scores

Utica-Rome, NY B 52.5 Watertown-Fort Drum, NY B 52.5 Binghamton, NY C+ 46.9 Rochester, NY C 42.3 Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY C- 41.0 Elmira, NY C- 39.9

Using Syracuse's Life Score

Syracuse is a regional baseline, not a neighborhood reading, use it to shortlist, then dig into the dimensions that matter to you.

  • Its strongest dimension is environment (88/100) and its weakest is schools (5/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Syracuse head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Syracuse lands on the national rankings for cost, safety, pay and more. Browse rankings

Scores summarize federal data at the metro level; crime, schools and cost vary widely within a single metro.

Explore more

Frequently Asked Questions

What are Syracuse's biggest strengths? ▼
Syracuse's strongest dimensions are Environment (88/100), Wages (83/100), Cost of Living (39/100). Environment is top-tier nationally.
What are Syracuse's weakest areas? ▼
Syracuse's lowest-scoring dimensions are Schools (5/100), Childcare (19/100), Safety (37/100). Schools weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Syracuse compared to the national average? ▼
Syracuse's Regional Price Parity is 95.7 (4.3% less than national); rent RPP 80.7.
What is the average salary in Syracuse? ▼
Syracuse median salary: $71,924, 291,140 jobs. Top: Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Registered Nurses, Retail Salespersons.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Syracuse's 46.9/100 blends 7 federal-data dimensions - see our methodology page for the weighting.

Research Guides

Data from BEA, HUD, FBI UCR, BLS OES, NCES, DOL, and EPA. Not affiliated with the U.S. Government.

Related

Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCompare Editorial

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, DOL, and EPA. Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

All federal data sources used on this page
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - multi-dimension demographic + housing + income aggregates for cross-area comparison. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • BEA Regional Economic Accounts - GDP, personal income, employment by state and metro. bea.gov/data/regional
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) - wage estimates for comparable-area indexing. bls.gov/oes
  • FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) - crime statistics for safety-score component. fbi.gov/ucr
  • NCES Common Core of Data - public-school quality indicators by area. nces.ed.gov/ccd
  • EPA AirNow + Air Quality System (AQS) - air-quality measurements by area. epa.gov/outdoor-air-quality-data
  • HUD Fair Market Rents (FMR) - county and metro housing-cost indicators. huduser.gov/datasets/fmr

Every figure on PlainCompare is loaded directly from BEA, HUD, FBI UCR, BLS OEWS, NCES, DOL, EPA, and the Census Bureau, no number is typed in by an editor. This metro's Life Score is computed directly from the 7 federal sources cited above. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026.